Our Blog: Upward Alabama

Aging With OCD: Understanding Symptoms, Finding Support, and Reclaiming Your Life

By Misti Norton, Ph.D., DBSM

Posted: April 15, 2026

OCD doesn’t fade with age, and it doesn’t always look the same from one decade to the next. Many older adults find that symptoms shift as life circumstances change—retirement, health concerns, caregiving roles, and the loss of loved ones can all create new openings for OCD to take hold. Recognizing these patterns is the first step toward getting the right support and building a life guided by values rather than fear.

Tending the Shepherd: Why Clergy Must Embrace Evidence-Based Psychotherapy

By Courtney Worley, Ph.D.

Clergy

Treatment

Posted: April 10, 2026

Clergy — whether they serve as priests, pastors, imams, rabbis, ministers, or in any of the countless other roles that constitute religious leadership — are professionals uniquely positioned at the intersection of human suffering and spiritual hope. They sit with the dying. They counsel the divorcing. They bear witness to addiction, abuse, grief, and despair, often without the protective frameworks that guide social workers, psychologists, or physicians. And yet, when it comes to seeking structured professional psychological support for themselves, many clergy remain deeply reluctant.

Navigating the Transition from High School to College with 504 Accommodation Plans: A Guide for Alabama Families

By Virginia Rediker, MSW, MPH, LICSW-S

504 and IEP Plans

Autism ADHD Treatment

Posted: April 7, 2026

For many Alabama families, the transition from high school to college is a time of excitement and anticipation. For students with disabilities—including neurodiverse young adults with ADHD, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), learning disabilities, and related conditions—this transition also brings new challenges and opportunities. Understanding how educational accommodation plans change after high school is essential for students and parents in Birmingham, Montgomery, Mobile, Huntsville, Tuscaloosa, and across the state.

Neurodiversity and PTSD in Adults: When Trauma Looks Different & Why Specialty Care Matters

By Megan Keyes, Ph.D.

PTSD

Autism ADHD Treatment

Posted: April 6, 2026

What distinguishes effective care for neurodivergent adults is not abandoning evidence-based treatments, but how those treatments are conceptualized, paced, and delivered. Clinicians with expertise in both PTSD and neurodivergent presentation approach CPT and PE with a deep understanding of sensory processing, executive functioning, communication style, and nervous-system regulation. This allows treatment to remain evidence-based while also being accessible, tolerable, and effective for the individual.